Those who suffered the "curse" of the lottery:Previous TopicNext Topic

It's not the curse of the lottery, it's the curse of publicity! A young rancher South Dakota who won $292 million on Powerball, was required to front the media after his win and have families private details revealed. The Mayor of his home town was interviewed on television, about how the town might benefit.

Back in 1960, a NSW lottery players won $100,000, worth million today, soon after his Eight-year-old son was kidnapped and a ransom of $25,000 was demanded. The money was paid, but the child was killed. As a result lottery procedures in Australia were changed after the Thorne case, with all lottery winners being given the option of remaining anonymous when collecting their winnings. Very few have opted for publicity.

I don't know. The clerk just said that, and was confused also of the terminals msg.

 Believe me, if I would have won $20K,  I wouldn't forget the name of the ticket either! 

**Congrats on your winnings!

I mean, if you win BIG , do you have a choice? Your very own state Lottery will advertise all over TV, that you

have won!!  People that know you will contact you and even folks that haven't seen you in years will come out

of the woodwork.  It's very hard to keep everything hush, hush!

Hi Everyone the thing is to say on a number that you like, I will play my dreams, and look it up in The Three Wisemen, those numbers are good. I have won money from those books.  Another thing you have to be Lucky!  We can't win all the time, but it is about luck!

On January 6, 2004, Whittaker was arrested for misdemeanor assault after allegedly threatening the life of a bar manager in St. Albans, West Virginia. He has also been sued after allegedly groping a woman at a dog racetrack. Whittaker told a TV station after he was charged with drunken driving, "It doesn't bother me because I can tell everyone to piss off."

That is a quote from the Wikipedia entry about Jack Whittaker that I think sums it up.  People think because they have a lot of money that they can do whatever they want in some cases to whomever they want, and often do or try to.  I know it is a cliche', but there are just some things no amount of money can buy, pure and simple.  This doesn't just apply to lottery winners either, it can apply to as discussed before, athletes, children from wealthy families who's parents give them loads of money, even people who go to a regular job or start their own business and work their way up to earning a large amount of money can have this happen.  I have seen it.

Hello Marcie!

Are you talking about staying with the same number , like in Pick 3 or Lotto, Cash 5 , etc?

**Also, do you think there's at least one person from each state that reads these threads daily?

Thanks!

In Australia winners do have a choice, state lottery can not release the identity of winners without their permission; and very few winners give it.

The only option you have in most U.S. states is to find an anonymous way to claim, like through a trust or a corporation.  That way, your name isn't plastered all over media and in the lottery's official records, your name isn't there, the name of the trust/corporation/etc. is.

This has been discussed many times on here before.  Some states allow this, some don't, so I guess it depends on what state you live in.

DelmarvaChick was right on the money with the accessment! Bravo for being unbias and non judgemental about the persons. Truly Bad things happen to good people and you cannot have enough money in the world when such comes about. Yes poor judgement , mismanagement occurs even to the richest of folks. Need I mention That some of the wealthiest folks LOST MILLIONS in what they constituted to be a great investement ( Ponzi schemes). The point is, Jack Whitaker lost a grandchild, flesh, blood . Rich or poor he doesnt deserve the degrading comments that have been shelled out by media or folks that didnt walk in his shoes.

We magnify the actions of those in wealth ...

That is true.  I also wonder if sudden wealth magnifies our actions as well.  If winners had problems before, the sudden wealth of a lottery win can magnify them if the winners aren't careful.  The things that lurk deep within us that we keep buried, sudden wealth can bring them to the surface, and no good will come of it.  Just like the comment I posted from Jack Whitaker, he apparently got the idea that he had all that money so he could do whatever he wanted, and it has ended up costing him dearly.  Many people have that inside them, and the big wealth of a lottery win can bring it to the surface.

Just because someone has a lot of money doesn't mean they can do anything they want or are exempt from the rules, they apply to all, rich and poor.

That's true, but the money can also bring out the real you. Plenty of people just can't afford to be the losers they'd be if they didn't need to keep working for their money.